"Dreaming with the fingertips."
Tom Kristiaan began music lessons at the age of 9. He always dreamed of playing the piano and started a classical music education at the Bruges Conservatorium (1984-1992). Later on he studied also accordion, jazz piano, ensemble, singing, music theory and music composition in conservatoria of Antwerp, Ostend, Courtrai and Bruges.
Bit by bit he turned his hand to composition and developed his signature style of neoclassical, dreamy melodies, always steeped in a sense of melancholy.
In 2019 Tom Kristiaan recorded his first solo album, In Deep Woods. Several tracks from it have been used as film music on Belgian TV.
In 2020, during Covid lockdown, he composed Tom's Gymnopédies (EP), his personal interpretation of Erik Satie’s famous Trois Gymnopédies.
In 2021, he released his second full album Glance of You, which included the singles Winter Snow and Seized by the Wind.
In 2022, he recorded the album Petites danses et rêveries, a collection of warm, intimate compositions inspired by the world of dance. Wannes De Vogel, an artist from Antwerp, created a unique artwork for each piece. The album is produced by award winning producer Patrick Hamilton. His album reached more than 30 million streams in 180 countries, "Un Sourire et une Larme" was selected as 'Lekkere Track' by NPO4 radio and the album was nominated for the Edison music awards (Publieksprijs) together with artists Max Richter and Hans Zimmer.
In september 2023 he released his fourth album Inspired by Nature. Kristiaan let him inspire by the nature photography of Wouter Pattyn, who travelled through Europe and collected the best pictures in his book "Wild of Europe". The result are 12 astonishing songs capturing the mood of the pictures: the endless vastness of Iceland, the calmness of the Scottish fields, the reverence for the majestic Alps till the elegant movements of a horde of birds in the lowlands. The album reached more than 2,5 million streams and is beeing promoted by a concert tour with live piano with synchronised large screen image projection.
Tom Kristiaan's work does not go unnoticed and he starts collaborating with different composers. He composed Fading Shadows together with London's composer Matthew Adam and 4 different songs with German neoclassical composer Dennis Korn as Tumbling Leaves and Stillness of the Night.
In 2024, he released his fifth album, Moods. “Humans are emotional beings. I aimed to capture these moods, sentiments, and moments of our daily life and translated them into music,” he explains. Singles like Blessedness, Daydreaming and Evening Kiss were featured on major Spotify piano playlists and gained airplay on national radio.
People tell ...
"A concert we won't forget! Tom has it: the musical gift to touch people. He touches the sensitive soul inside of you. Pure emotion!"
"Prachtig. Verstilling en verdieping."
"A whole movie passed through my mind! Top!"
"So f*** beautiful. The melancholy is striking: Tom Kristiaan is a poet."